The present invention generally relates to devices and methods for determining the relative sharpness or dullness of a blade cutting edge. More particularly, it relates to a new and improved semi-automatic, hand-held apparatus for objectively measuring the relative sharpness of a slicing blade.
In the field of commercially prepared, pre-packaged sliced meats, carefully sliced stacks of meat products are prepared and packaged in an attractive manner for sale in a grocery store refrigeration case. Illustrative examples of these packaged sliced meat products include bologna, salami, ham, turkey and chicken. A great many of these food products are packaged in called see-through pedestal packages, wherein substantially uniform slices, having smooth substantially perfect edges and surfaces, are generally pressed into a raised bubble or blister package portion wherein they may be readily viewed by the purchaser. In these packages, near perfection in slice quality and stacking is prerequisite to successful sales.
Blade sharpness effects both slice and stack quality. Dull blade cutting edges are responsible for a number of identified defects in the sliced meat products such as tails, blown edges, torn slices, ragged edges, folded slices, skewed stacks, fluffed stacks and accordion stacks.
In the commercial high speed, high volume meat packaging processes, the above-identified problems caused by a dull blade in the automatic slicing machines and operations are extremely time consuming and expensive. Re-forming or re-aligning the stacks by hand increases the labor cost associated with the packaging. Irregular stacking, and especially the production of irregular slices increases the amount of food waste which is very expensive to providers.
Heretofore, the methods for evaluating the slicer blade sharpness have relied upon subjective evaluations such as, running a thumb over the edge of a blade or getting the feel of the blade by making a manual test slice of a meat material. Differences in moisture and other properties of the meat being sliced may require different degrees of sharpness to provide problem-free slices in uniform stacks in the automatic slicing equipment. A subjective determination that a blade is sharp from one kind of meat may be inaccurate and inappropriate for another grade of meat requiring a different sharpness level.
Accordingly, to overcome the shortcomings of prior art subjective methods, it is an object of the present invention to provide a hand-held test instrument which is effective to take the guess work out of evaluating slicer blade sharpness.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved device capable of objectively measuring the relative sharpness of the cutting edge of a blade which is capable of creating objective sharpness standards for blades which may be correlated to different types of meat products to be sliced on given different slicer brands or models.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved blade sharpness measuring device and method whose results exhibit little or no operator bias.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved blade sharpness measuring device whose sharpness determinations are substantially consistent at room temperatures of between about 40.degree. F. and 75.degree. F.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved sharpness measuring device to permit a blade to be tested for requisite sharpness before a slicing operation has begun to effectively reduce or eliminate food waste associated with imperfect slicing and stacking heretofore caused by dull blades.